Internal combustion engines are employed to generate torque for driving loads of many types. Gasoline and diesel engines are available for driving generators to provide emergency electrical power to hospitals, as well as in industrial situations where power is essential in the event the grid power is interrupted. Similarly, many farmers, including dairy farmers, require a reliable source of electrical power in order to milk cows and safely store the milk for delivery to a processing center.
Portable engines are also available for use with pumps and other equipment for allowing the equipment to operate at remote areas where electrical power is otherwise not readily available. Electrical generator and engine combinations are also often used at remote well sites where exploratory drilling operations are carried out to find oil or gas.
Portable engine and generator equipment is often marketed as a unit so that there is no substantial connections necessary at the remote site, except for a source of fuel and connections to the electrical load. Otherwise, the generator unit need only be powered up to supply electrical power to the load. Depending on the kilowatts of energy supplied by the generator unit, the engines may be required to deliver 200-400 horsepower, and more. This size and weight of the engine cannot be handled by workmen without lifting equipment, and thus field repair is either often not possible, or is very cumbersome. As such, if the engine or generator of the unit should fail, then the only recourse is to ship the defective unit back to the manufacturer for repair, and have a replacement unit brought to the remote site. This is obviously time consuming, and in the meantime there may not be any electrical energy available, unless alternate units are readily available, or the load must be shared with other working units. One could have spare generator units at the remote site to take over for the defective generator unit, but this alternative is expensive. The availability of one or more spare generator units may be the only solution, if an interruption in the delivery of electrical power would result in a costly disruption.
While gasoline and diesel engines, as well as propane gas engines, are well developed and generally reliable, there are many working parts that can fail and render the generator unit unusable. Even a good program of maintenance for engines does not guarantee a long and reliable life. The fuel for internal combustion engines can be contaminated or fail to provide sufficient lubrication to the valves and cause the engine to fail. Timing chains, spark plugs, valves, etc., can fail, as well as any of the electrical components that control the operation of the engine. Where the environment is harsh, such as very hot or cold locations, or those areas of high humidity or dust conditions, the life of an engine is correspondingly shortened. Often the useful life of an engine is disregarded and the operator runs the engine until it fails. This could be avoided by replacing the engine when it nears the end of its useful life.
From the foregoing, it can be seen that a need exists for a technique and apparatus that allows for quick and easy replacement of an engine from a unit so that operations can be continued after a short period of interruption.